Why can't I stop dreaming?!

Here is some history: I'm 24, I have Anxiety/Panic disorder. I have been taking Effexor XR since April, and it seems to help with my symptoms. I also take Xanax as needed for panic attacks. This also helps. However, I have not been able to have one night's sleep without dreaming in 8 months! I told my psychiatrist, and she prescribed Ambian, which helped me fall asleep fast, but I still had dreams all night. Then she suggested taking the Xanax every night, starting with .5 mg. When that didn't work, she told me to try 2. Nothing helps. I dream all night long. Nightmares, stupid dreams, ex-boyfriend dreams, vacation dreams, high school dreams, etc. All freakin' night! I wake up in the morning feeling like my brain hasn't rested! It is getting really annoying. This happened to me a few years back when I was first diagnosed with Anxiety/Panic disorder. But it went away after about a month. This has been 8 months now!!! Does ANYONE out there know what is causing this and if there is some kind of medication out there that would help this?

I think one person nailed the issue, anxiety at some level affects sleep. Remove anxiety, be able to relax, & sleep will come. I too have many of the symptoms discussed above. The only way I can get rid of them is totally relax, do they come back, yes sometimes but not for a while. How do I relax, the only thing that works for me is a 'stress eraser', a small electronic device that helps you control your breathing & clear your thoughts (google it). I read the entries to see if drugs could help, if only for a while, now I know they won't. Thank you to all who have written, & I hope you find a solution, I will continue to try & find a long term answer too, Jamie

I also would suggest going to church (if you're not too sick). I wasn't having any sleeping problems until recently and I haven't been to church in 3 weeks and I think that's one of the reasons why. Also praying and reading your bible. Getting together with people who go to church and have Jesus in their life. That HELPS a lot. You will sleep like a baby then.

I'm 24 but I've had these dreams all of my life and my mom has them too. Of course I have the usual.. severe panic disorder, depressive disorder, and social phobia but the dreams started before all of those really got worse. I remember my dreams, at least 1 or 2 a night, and that's part of the problem. They are so real! When I wake up in the morning I'm just exhausted, I'm tired all day. I've tried dream crystals and dream catchers.. no i'm not a hippy but I'll try anything.. when I used the dream crystal the amount of the "bad" dreams went down but I still woke up all the time and in the morning I was exhausted... hm.. Maybe I should elaborate on the dreams.. I have the "bad" dreams which range from just me laying in bed but knowing I'm asleep and I can't wake up, I've dated people who could tell when it was happening and they would wake up but mostly I have to make my body shake itself awake. It's really creepy,, then I have dreams where I wake up and get out of bed, walk into the living room and there's a demon just standing in the middle of the room or I'll look over the edge of my bed and writhing bodies in hell have replaced my floor. It gets to where I keep dreaming when I'm awake, I hallucinate.. I either hear or see things.. it was really bad a few nights ago though.. the cabinets looked like they were breathing and my hands had the "sparkler effect" I felt like I was tripping and I don't do drugs. I take trazadone at night to stay asleep because if I don't I wake up after every dream.. and I start dreaming as soon as I fall asleep as annoying as that is. It's the only phase of sleep I go through, stupid head is all messed up but my mom has that problem to. If anyone has any suggestions please let me know.. I'm so tired.

Thank you, all of you for letting me know that I am not by myself. I googled " how can I stop dreaming" and this was the first site I came to. It was faith. I needed all of your words, thought and feelings. I am not alone. That was so important to me. By reading everyones post, I see that this is not something that will go away. We are a rare few..... Those who say this is " just dreaming" and " to enjoy it" will never know what we are going through. I would like to ask them to stay up for days and days and then try to function. They would never be able to do it. They would be the one who would complain after one sleepless night. We have no choice. We have to function with our day to day lives even though we did this all night and into the morning.

Thank you for all for letting me into your life and sharing your stories.
I knew I wasn't crazy

Depression, anxiety, panic attacks, even OCD are all related to excessive dreaming, the dreams keep you in REM state for too long preventing the brain to stay in NREM sleep where your body is restored, that's why you always awake feeling exhausted and very tired no matter how long you sleep, in fact, the longer you sleep the worse: your brain will be stuck in REM sleep most of those hours, that's why sleep deprivation can "cure" depression at least temporarily: you just don't get on REM sleep for too much time. Awakening in the middle of a dream can be seen as your body attempt to lift from the exhausting REM state.

Read this web site NOW, it will explain everything better then me, it talks about mostly about depression but you'll learn how excessive dreaming plays a role in many disorders:

What a depressing topic to read. I started dreaming heavily a year or 2 ago and it's destroying me. Everytime I wake up I remember every detail. On a rare occasion I'll be awake inside the dream, conscious and moving, trying out ridiculous things because I'm dreaming, only to wake up shortly ever. Random stuff. People I haven't met in years, the girl I fell in love with when I was 11 years old, work scenarios, the end of the world, monster attacks, political discussions, completely random. I started writing down my dreams hoping there was a message in between the lines but reading the lines back after I wrote them, it's like a crazy person wrote down his thoughts.

I came here looking for a solution, but all I find is more people with problems. All the suggestions here, I've heard a million times before. Calm down at night, pray to the lord, visit a therapist. I can't calm down that which I cannot control, I'm an atheist and these overprices therapists give me nothing but worthless advice that worked for their other patients.

For those that share these problems, and by the read of this topic there are many of you, you have my sympathies. I would wish this condition or whatever you call it unto no man.

You are WRONG!!!!! My sugar levels are completely normal and I have had a glucose tolerance test.........I did not know there were other people like me. I am so tired. I just want to sleep and feel rested. I too have also had vivid dreams since I was a toddler. I'm fixing to get back to the forum to see what else everyone is saying. I also grind my teeth (have always done this) and have arthritis in my neck (now that I am older) (56). I wake up and HURT!!! My grandmother and I are just alike in this respect and come to think of it, she also had vivid dreams as did other people in my family. btw - my husband is tired of listening to my dreams. also btw - I'm diagnosed as being ADD. Maybe I'm really not. I just never get any rest and am tired all the time.

Just about a month or so ago,
I started dreaming every night non stop,very extensive and descriptive. I feel so tiresome and exhausted. I dream about ex boyfriends,weird events,old memories of parents , just weird old things......I don't get it. I just need some advice,please. Email me at. ***@****

The best solution that works for me every time to prevent the detailed and excessive dreaming - is to be creative. Many of us go through our daily routine and never use the part of our brain that allows us to think up thinks and provide solutions. So at night, our brain does it for us. Take up a hobby - paint, take pictures, sew, fix the leaky faucet, write a poem... What ever it takes to make you mind work differently then normal. I find the less creative I am, the more I dream and I am exhausted! Give it a try.

There is no alternative to seeing your doctor. Ou have a list of symptoms that need treatment. Ask for a recommendation for a psychiatrist. They will able to get you the right meds. You should get a therapist too. It seems like a lot of work and a big step to take but it's just what you need to do to get better. And you do want to get better don't you?

I'm fifteen and having dreams continuously for the past 4 months. Mum tells me its just me thinking about dreams that makes me dream every night. BUT ITS NOT!!! Even when i don't think about anything I DREAM EVERY BLOODY NIGHT. Just because these people don't go through it they think its normal and that we are making a big fuss out of it. They dont know how its ruining our lives.Waking up so exhausted every morning and not being able to concentrate and they think its our fault? SERIOUSLY.

It's the Effexor medication!..... I am on it too and only for.a month I dream all night and have same problem as you, waking up feeling exhausted! I never had this problem before I started taking out! the only thing that I can think of that can stop this us stop very taking that particular medication and try a new one! It won't stop....unfortunately this is probably the only other option :(

have you been tested for Narcolepsy? I have it and am going crazy trying to get a restful nights sleep. In narcolepsy, REM is the main cycle of sleep a person will stay in (falling asleep into REM and usually waking up from REM).

Anti-depressants seems to just make dreams more active and prominent and adds to the EDS symptoms.

Sleep aids don't help for someone with narcolepsy because our sleep phases are already messed up. Adds to dreaming problems, EDS and more prone to sleep walking.

Relaxation exercises suck because I can fall asleep at the drop of a hat anyway...and I just go right into REM...I never get much delta stage sleep.

I've heard Xyrem helps for people with Narcolepsy/Cataplexy. Helps with EDS, stops the remembering of alot of dreams. I'm too scared to try it though.

If anyone knows a way for narcoleptics to skip the first stage of REM, I think they'd be a bazillionare. I'd make them one!

i have the exact same issues as you, but i don't take any meds. i am 41 and can still remember so many dreams from my childhood, so i know this has been going on for a long time. everything you have said, not feeling rested, the dream residue...everything!! and i'm just so over it. did you ever find a solution? i am searching the internet now trying to find answers. let me know if you ever found something to make the dreams stop. i also asked my parents if they have dreams every night that they recall in the morning & they said not very often. my dr. seems to think i am so creative and that cause the dreams. perhaps, but seems like a long shot to me. it's helpful to know i am not alone, but heartbreaking to know someone suffers as i do. take care & i really hope we get some good sleep one day.

I have the same problem. And if one more person says, "Everyone dreams every night" I'll scream. This is different. I've always been a dreamer but, it used to be a few nights a week.Now Its almost like being in a movie. I'm activly particpating and its very real. It happens every night, ALL night. Sometimes its one dream and other times it as many as 4-5. I wake feeling like Ive never slept. I'm tired all day. It's been happening for about 10 months now. I dread goin to sleep. I take no medications on a daily basis. I'm at such a loss to whats goin on. I've tried exercising, goin to bed early. I stopped smoking. I feel really helpless.

well all of my life i have suffered from frequent and very vivid dreams as well as lots of night mares. and since i was a teenager have suffered with severe insomnia. in my early 20s i was diagnosed with manic depression and anxiety. i have been in and out of therapist and psychiatrists offices for years. three years ago i was put on cymbalta ambien ativan and risperdone and my dream state went to zero. but resently i have been switched from cymbalta to welbutrin and noticed my dreams are starting to come back...but they aren't as bad as they used to be. but if they get worse i might go back on cymbalta....so for all those out there on effexor maybe try cymbalta instead.

Hey Aruba417, it's been a while since you posted something on here i just wanted to know how you are doing and if you are still having those dreams because i am going through the same thing, if you are better or had any luck with something please let me know thanks..

Hey Daydreamer78, it's been a while since you posted something on here i just wanted to know how you are doing and if you are still having those dreams because i am going through the same thing, if you are better or had any luck with something please let me know thanks..

You *****.. you just don't understand do you? it's not the dreams that bother us it's how they make us feel when we are awake. if you don't have anything nice to say or a solution to the ******* problem then don't leave a comment ok...

I've been having vivid dreams every night for the past six years i m 30 yrs old woman my dreams feel so real that i can even eat drink and smoke like i was awake most of them feel like nightmares cause they interfere with my waking life, sometimes i even feel psychotic because of them.
To top it off in my waking life i allucinate and hear voices and sometimes i misshear what a person is saying as well as hearing noices that coincide with my thoughts as if they were answering. I've never been suicidal but felt a s force been trying to kill me in several occasions.
So it does get worse people for me it has, i obviously need help but i m reluctant in using medication besides hypnotherapy and maybe the occult.
I just felt like sharing my experience hope it makes you feel better cause it could of gotten much worse i could go on........

Here's one (of many) articles on dreaming and REM sleep. We dream while in the REM sleep stage, though there are other stages of deep sleep where we don't dream. https://www.verywellmind.com/understanding-dreams-2224258

I am a big dreamer, everynight I sleep comes along a dream... Depending lots on what's happening in my life, my dreams mean so much to me regardless of any kind... Good, bad, insecure, lonelines, exciting and scary in a lot of cases, however my dreams have always eventually made sense to me!

Ive had this same problem and it seems to be getting better rather than worse, i can have a good 8 to 10 hours sleep and sleep right through but be so drained! I have a young daughter and have suffered from anxiety and PND every since i've had her but my dreams are getting more and more vivid wether I take my anti depressants or not so cant see a link there, its exhausting ive mentioned it to my doctor but like many they dont see it as a problem but it is! it effects everything when your tired especially having a job or child to look after you dont have the energy to be able to do anything else! hope someones got a good idea for us all!

Okay,I tried the brainwave music and all I got was a headache.Went back to surfing the web for an answer,any answer,and found this website dedicated to mens health.The original poster and many others have the same problem.In the answer posts there were the usual "Dreams are normal" and "You need Dream",but there was something I never heard before.This one had the same problems and a bit ago his mother took him in for a sleep study.Afterwards the doctor told him he had narcolepsy.So I looked it up and it said,"Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder.Narcoleptics, when falling asleep, generally experience the REM stage of sleep within 5 minutes; whereas most people do not experience REM sleep until an hour or so later.The main characteristic of narcolepsy is Excessive Daytime Sleepiness (EDS), even after adequate night time sleep. A person with narcolepsy is likely to become drowsy or fall asleep or just be very tired throughout the day, often at inappropriate times and places."It also says," Hypnagogic hallucinations are vivid, often frightening, dreamlike experiences that occur while dozing, falling asleep and/or while awakening.In most cases, symptoms first appear when people are between the ages of 7 and 25. In rare cases, however, narcolepsy may appear at younger age or in older adults. If left undiagnosed and untreated, early onset narcolepsy can interfere with psychological, social, and cognitive function and development and can undermine academic and social activities."From the sounds of it narcolepsy means a person spends an unusual amount of time in rem sleep.Causing an extreme amount of tiredness despite the amount of sleep a person gets.Now to find a way to push myself out of rem sleep.Hope this help everyone.

I used to have those same dreams. I would scream and I would feel the pain in my body that I would feel in my dream. I think it in my case anyway may have come from many yrs of repressed memories. I'm 38 now and I'm have chronic pain due to some injuries but I went on to have yrs of peaceful sleep. The bad dreams are back but they are not as bad as they used to be. Don't give up hope. Mabey you just need to let some things go. God bless and I pray sweeter dreams to you.

I hear you...You are just like me. I too have anxiety/ panic disorder and haven't had a good nights sleep in like years. But I am sure I used to dream a lot before I was diagnosed. I too take xanax , but doesn't help with dreaming. I dream about train crashes , plane crashes, sunami's, bridges collapsing, travelling over the world, stupid ex boyfriend - exactly like you....I am so over it. I'd sooner not sleep at all.

I too just want one night without dreaming. I've been dreaming since I can ever remember. I am now 34. I am so over it. I wake up so exhausted and drained. And they aren't pleasant dreams either. no fairies or butterflies or rainbows here!

This is really depressing to read all these comments. I feel like I will dream forever and never get a good nights sleep again. I have been diagnosed with schizophrenia and depression and I take Risperdal and Trazodone. I have a very hard time sleeping it seems my brain won't shut off. When I sleep I toss and turn from side to side. I also can not sleep during the day at all. When I wake up in the morning I wake up bright and early and can not go back to sleep until bedtime. There has got to be some research out there that can explain this. If anyone knows how to help please share.

I too am a lifelong dreamer. I don't take meds but have been diagnosed with PTSD. I was bit by a dog on the face when i was a year and a half old but have no memory of it. I have a huge fear of the dark, loud noises, and cannot sleep in silence. I have been told i have sleep apnea. Hell, i quit breathing when i'm awake too!!!! Maybe twice a year I get a good nights sleep. What to do?????

I also have panic/anxiety disorder, for past 20 years. I don't know about meds that stop you from dreaming but there are a lot of meds for anxiety that will cause dreams. I am on trazadone at night and it causes to to have very significant dreams. But they are always good dreams so I love having them. Maybe check the symptoms on the meds you take and see if they are causing your dreams? Vicki

This has been going on for years with me. Like everyone said it isn't the dreams. Its the exhausting feeling the next day. It has ruin effects on my life. I don't work ut that much cause I go thru the day with the zombie feeling. The interesting thing is if I take a nap during the day that is the only time I really don't dream. Like everyone else I wish there was some cure for it. I have been killed in my dreams so many times. Even with nightmares I dont wake u afraid I just wake up open my eyes like it is just another day.

All you dreaming people need to follow a ritual every night to help you relax and switch off your brain;-
Get a portable cd player for your bedroom.
Don't drink any alcohol after 7pm
write a journal every night about your day and your feelings,
run yourself a nice warm bubbly bath with lavender bubblebath.
Light some candles and dim the lights,
Lay in the bath and soak and try to switch your brain off and think of nothing, meditate and concentrate on your breathing, it helps you to stop your mind wandering. If you start thinking stuff just re focus on blanking your brain.
Make yourself a hot chocolate in the winter or a cold milky drink in the summer.
While you are drinking your drink, write a list of things that you have to do the next day and leave the list with your keys and bag or wallet etc for the next morning.
Put on a sleepy relaxing music cd at a low volume and put a night light on in your bedroom.
Get into bed and be warm and comfortable, if possible with a small window open.
Good night guarenteed!
Good Luck!

I know exactly what you are talking about!! I have been doing the same kinds of dreams but they go from one dream to the next nonstop until I wake up in the morning. I was beginning to think I was the only one who had this problem and started looking online for solutions when I came across your comment. If you find out how to get them to stop I would love to know. I have cut out all caffeine including Tea and Coffee as well as chocolate out of my life now for 5 months. All I drink is water and sometimes a caffeine free Sprite.

The Content on this Site is presented in a summary fashion, and is intended to be used for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not intended to be and should not be interpreted as medical advice or a diagnosis of any health or fitness problem, condition or disease; or a recommendation for a specific test, doctor, care provider, procedure, treatment plan, product, or course of action. MedHelp is not a medical or healthcare provider and your use of this Site does not create a doctor / patient relationship. We disclaim all responsibility for the professional qualifications and licensing of, and services provided by, any physician or other health providers posting on or otherwise referred to on this Site and/or any Third Party Site. Never disregard the medical advice of your physician or health professional, or delay in seeking such advice, because of something you read on this Site. We offer this Site AS IS and without any warranties. By using this Site you agree to the following Terms and Conditions. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your physician or 911 immediately.